Mohammed Kudus will serve an extended ban after the West Ham United forward was sent off for violent conduct in the defeat at Tottenham Hotspur last month.
Kudus kicked and slapped Tottenham’s Micky van de Ven before pushing his hands into the face of Pape Matar Sarr in an extraordinary meltdown towards the end of the 4-1 defeat.
On-field referee Andrew Madley initially showed Kudus a yellow card but the VAR recommended a review and the Ghana international was shown a straight red.
And the 24-year-old, who had scored West Ham’s opening goal in the London derby, will now serve an extra two-match suspension and pay a £60,000 fine in addition to his initial three-game ban after the Football Association decided to enforce a stronger punishment.
His three-match ban was set to end after the Hammers’s clash with Everton this weekend but he will now also miss the games against Newcastle and Arsenal after the international break. West Ham have also been fined £30,000 for failing to control their players.
A statment from the FA read: “West Ham United and Mohammed Kudus have been sanctioned in relation to incidents during their Premier League fixture against Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday 19 October.
“It was alleged that the club failed to ensure their players didn’t behave in an improper and/or provocative and/or violent way around the 82nd minute. West Ham United admitted to this charge, and an independent Regulatory Commission subsequently fined the club £30,000.
“It was also alleged that Mohammed Kudus acted in an improper manner and/or used violent conduct after the offence that he was sent off for. The forward admitted to this charge, and he has been given a two-match suspension and £60,000 fine by the Regulatory Commission.”
His additional suspension is a further blow to under-pressure West Ham boss Julen Lopetegui, who saw his side get beaten 3-0 by Nottingham Forest in their most recent fixture. The Hammers have won just three of their 10 Premier League games since he replaced David Moyes and lie 14th in the table.
“I am not going to say here what I am going to talk with him (about), but for sure we are going to talk,” Lopetegui said when asked about the Kudus incident at the time.
“We are going to have time and I am sure he will be aware that he can improve his answer in this moment because it’s not good for him, for the club and not good for the team.
“But I can’t say anything more because I don’t see the action.”